December 2012 r The Bay Leaf California Native Plant Society • East Bay Chapter Alameda & Contra Costa Counties www.ebcnps.org www.groups.google.com/group/ebcnps CONSERVATION ANALYST FUND This is the eighth year that the East Bay Chapter's Conserva- tion Committee has greatly benefited from a part-time Con- servation Analyst. The position is funded by contributions from Chapter members. We hope you received the annual appeal in September. We urge you to give generously so that we can meet our goal of $40,000 and keep our very effective Conservation Analyst, Mack Casterman, on our team. Mack managed the saveknowland.org website and other media for the "No on Measure A1 Campaign", the parcel tax for the Oakland Zoo that could have been used for the expansion into Knowland Park. The hits on the website rose significantly to over 200 a day as the campaign went on and the measure did not pass. The website will continue to be the source for the why and how to conserve Oakland's wildland Knowland Park, one of our Chapter's 15 Botanical Priority Protection Areas. Mack is active with many other conservation concerns, such as the effort to stop off-road vehicle expansion in Tesla Park, another Botanical Priority Protection Area. Read about this and other EBCNPS Chapter conservation efforts at ebcnps.wordpress.com. Contributions may be sent to the Chapter's Elmwood Station address. Checks should be made to "CNPS", with a memo that the check is for the Conservation Analyst Fund. You may also contribute via PayPal on the Chapter's website at ebcnps.org. $19,915 raised so far for the 2013 Conservation Analyst Fund We are very grateful to the following donors who have con- tributed to the 2013 Conservation Analyst Fund: John Alcorn, Eleanor Bade, Laura Baker and Lewis Lubin, Linda and Richard Beidelman, Robert and Evelyn Berman, Martha Berthelsen, Bruce Beyaert, David Bigham and Howard Arendtson, Martha Breed, Aria Bonnett, Margaret Brostrom, Amida Cary, Bob Case, Carmen Castain, Dan Cheatham, Albert Chung, Patricia Coffey, Robert and Carol Coon, Bev- erly Cover, Charli and John Danielsen, Elizabeth Davidson, Adrienne Debisschop, William Dejager, Mark Detterman, John and Lisa Doyen, Christopher Erickson, Barbara Ertter, James and Betsy Flack, Holly Forbes and Gerald Ford, Nor- man Frank, Gordon Frankie, Dan Gluesenkamp, Marilyn and Amos Goldhaber, Judith Ann Gurbaxani, Joan Hamilton, Miao He, Claudia and Scott Hein, Daniel Hill, Justine Hume, Robert Jolda, Larry Jones, Elizabeth Katz, John Kenny, Marian Kirch and Cynthia Siegel, Gudrun Kleist, Marcia Kolb, Jill Korte, Kathy Kramer, Arvind Kumar and Ashok Jethanandani, Eve Lednicky, Barbara and Philip Leitner, David and Evelyne Len- nette, Ed Leong, Vera Lis, David Loeb, Lois and Harry Lutz, Mike Lynes, Matt Madison, Ruth Malone and Terry Sayre, Sandy McCoy and Natasha Beery, Shirley McPheeters, Jon Merkle, Louise Miller, Gregory Moore, Caroline Moyer, Brian Napolitan, Linda Newton, Bill Nownes, Richard O'Donnell, Lisa and Andy Paterson, Anita Pearson, Deborah Peterson, Tom Reid, John Roberts, Jean Robertson/ Earthly Delights, Philip and Shirley Schild, Brenda Senturia, Robert and Martha Sikora, Suzanne Skrivanich, David Smith, Elizabeth Sojourner, Robert Sorenson, Nicki Spillane, Emile Strauss, Ann Sullivan, Ted Tawshunsky, Delia and John Taylor, Chris Thayer, Liz Varnhagen, Jeanne Walpole, Stephen Walsh and Brenda Buxton, Joyce Walton, Susan Wickham, Joe and Doris Willingham, Christina Wistrom, Elaine Worthington-Jackson, Roberta Zorzyski. We also wish to thank Mary Frances Dahlquist and William Schramer who contribute regularly to the EBCNPS General Fund through their employers. Many thanks to the Stout Foundation, Shelagh Brodersen and Christopher Kroll, who have contributed recently to the EBCNPS Legal Fund. Delia Taylor CONSERVATION ANALYST FUND DONATIONS ARE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE! DONATE BEFORE DECEMBER 31 TO SAVE ON YOUR 2012 TAX BILL! MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS December 2012: No meeting (happy holidays!) January 23, 2013 (Orinda Public Library, Garden Room) The East Bay's Ancient Redwoods Todd Keeler-Wolf Watch for announcements of future membership meeting presentations at ebcnps.org and in the Bay Leaf, which will be published on paper as well as online four times per year and only online the remaining seven times per year. If you haven't yet done so, sign up to receive the Bay Leaf via email in the months when it is not published on paper: • Go to http: / / cnps.org • Click on "Member Login" in the upper left part of the home page. • Click on "New User Registration" to set up an ac- count. In the "Chapter Newsletter" line, select "Mailed Newsletter" if you would like to receive printed Bay Leaf issues via US mail and online-only issues via email. Select "E-mailed Newslet- ter" if you would like to receive all issues via email only. FIELD TRIP Sunday, January 6, 2:00 pm. Field trip to Huddart County Park to see Fetid Adder's Tongue. Location: Huddart County Park, 1100 Kings Mountain Road, Woodside (San Mateo County) California. Meet in the parking lot just past the pay station. David Margolies (510-654-0283, 510-393-1858 cell, divaricatum@gmail.net) will lead a hike on the Crystal Springs Trail where fetid adder's tongue Scoliopus bigelovii Liliaceae) blooms in early January. (In most locations outside botanical gardens, it blooms in late January or early February.) This is a gentle trail, losing about 200 feet over about 1/2 mile to the creek. We will walk to the creek and then return the same way. It is unlikely that there will be any other flowers out this early, but the fetid adder's tongue's presence tells us that the new flower season has started. (Other plants out of flower will also be identified.) The area is second growth redwood and mixed evergreen forest. How to get there: Go to Woodside: cross the Bay Bridge, get on 1-280 south and take it to the 84 west/ Woodside Road exit. Go west through the town of Woodside. Soon after the main part of the town, take a right onto Kings Mountain Road. The park entrance is on the right after a few miles. Go past the pay station into the main parking lot. We will meet there. Note that you must pay the parking fee even if the station is not staffed (use the envelopes provided). Note: There is poison oak in the park. Poison oak is dangerous even when it has no leaves. Stay on the trail. It will probably be muddy and may be raining. Be prepared. The walk will take place rain or shine. David Margolies THE BAY LEAF December 2012 RESTORATION Sunday, December 16, 9:00 am, Sibley Regional Park We will meet at the Oakland-side parking lot off Skyline, and then hike in to resume weed wrench attacks on the wall of French broom. If you plan to meet us coming from the Old Tunnel Road staging area, or you need loaner gloves or tools, RSVP to jmanley@ebparks.org. For other questions, e-mail Janet Gawthrop, janetgawthrop47@gmail.com . Garber Park Events To learn more about Garber Park and the Garber Park Stew- ards' restoration work visit our blog at http:/ / www.garber- parkstewards.blogspot.com/ . Wear long sleeves and pants and shoes with sturdy soles. We provide snacks and drinks, tools and gloves, but do bring your own gloves if you have them. Saturday, December 15, 10 am-1 pm Join us for our 3rd year of planting natives on the hillside at the Evergreen Lane Entrance. We are thrilled that Lech Naumovich, botanist and Executive Director of Golden Hour Restoration Institute will once again guide us in getting over 200 native plants in the ground. Saturday, January 5 (first Saturday of each month), 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, Pt. Isabel We remove invasive plants and re-vegetate with native plants grown from plants found at the site. We are located at the end of Rydin Road just off the 1-580 next to Hoffman Marsh. Contact e-mail: kyotousa@sbcglobal.net, cell: 510-684-6484 SAVING KNOWLAND PARK Dear David, I'm writing to thank you and the California Native Plant Soci- ety for having the courage and will to stand against the Oak- land Zoo's efforts to annex Knowland Park for construction projects. I've appreciated your work on behalf of protecting Knowland Park wild habitat since before the recent lawsuit, but I didn't have much of an idea of what that entailed. Now, having worked actively on the No on A1 campaign. I've learned quite a bit about the zoo's political and monetary muscle and its willingness to use manipulative, dishonest and even bullying tactics to get A1 passed and expand into Knowland Park. I'm awed by your true commitment to core conservation values and your willingness to risk being on the "wrong" side in acting on those values, even when other environmental groups decline to stand with you. Your strength makes us all stronger. I am very proud to be a member of East Bay CNPS. Thank you. Karen Smith Berkeley The message above was sent to East Bay Chapter president David Bigharn. 2 NATIVE HERE Native Here Nursery open 3 days a week Tuesdays, noon to 3 pm Fridays, 9 am to noon Saturdays, 10 am to 2 pm (weather permitting) Rain is falling for the third straight day as I write this. Will it have been "too much of a good thing" for all the seeds sown before John and I left for our Thanksgiving vacation? The stream is running through the nursery and winter has set in. We will be sowing seeds again on December 14 th , 18 th and 21 st during regular nursery hours, and probably on the 16 th as well. Wildflower seed, seeds of bulb plants, and those seeds that were collected in September requiring stratification are all scheduled for sowing this month. Winter here is a great time not just for sowing seeds, but for planting out container plants. Take advantage of the nursery's hours when the weather allows, and fill your garden with local natives. This time of year the inventory is constantly changing as new seedlings emerge and grow and cuttings have built root systems that can withstand transplanting. Native Here always can use extra hands during open nursery hours, and volunteers to water (although in the wet season, baling out the pots and removing weeds is more likely in order), help put newly potted plants away, record what is changing in the inventory of plants for sale, sowing seeds, working with cuttings, and writing up nursery sales. If those hours or ongoing week-to-week tasks do not fit your schedule, there are other opportunities: • There has been enthusiasm about having a series of workshops at Native Here during the summer months. To do that, someone is needed to find pre- senters, and plan publicity for these events. That could be one person for the whole series, or several people who each plan and execute one such event. • Helping keep items fresh on the nursery website, www.nativeherenursery.org. • Helping caption and keep track of special fun stuff on the nursery's Facebook page. The nursery is a major source of funding the chapter's ongo- ing expenses. By purchasing plants or helping to grow them, you are supporting the chapter. The nursery is at 101 Golf Course Road (or Golf Course Drive, depending on which end of the road you look at the sign) in Tilden Park. The phone number is 510-549-0211. The e-mail address is nativehere@ebcnps.org. There is a Native Here Nursery page on Facebook, a Native Here page on the Chapter web site, http://ebcnps.org/nativehere_nursery/ and a special website for Native Here, www.nativeherenurs- ery.org. The Native Here website is designed to work well on smart phones. Charli Danielsen dlR MESSAGE FROM THE CHAPTER PRESIDENT Hello to all my fellow CNPS members! As I move towards the completion of my two exciting years in the Chapter President role, I thought I'd take this opportunity to reflect on my experi- ence. I knew there would be a lot of hard work, there certainly has been that. What I didn't fully know was the great group of active Chapter members who have helped me in, and continue to do, great things in so many areas. If CNPS exists for the "preservation and enjoyment of California's Native Plants" then this is a job our Chapter and Society does well. Some efforts have been pure fun. The Board of Directors meet- ings I conducted were professional and tone and focused in actions. Our Chapter Board is a hard working, serious group. The yearly Plant Fairs held at our Native Here Nursery, where I got to meet a wider membership and public, were a joy. The State CNPS Board and Chapter Council meeting we hosted here in June was a challenge, but the efforts of dedi- cated Chapter volunteers made for a smooth and impressive event. Attending Conservation, Bay Leaf, Vegetation, Unusual Plants, and other Committee meetings informed me on how the Chapter "gets the job done", and has a lot of shared ex- citement doing it. Some efforts have been more difficult. Our campaigns to pro- tect valuable native plant resources such as the grasslands and eel grass beds at Pt. Molate, the prairies at Pt. Pinole and the Richmond Field Station, or the incredible maritime chaparral and other diverse resources at Knowland Park, have been demanding and at times, daunting. We as a Chapter have had successes and failures in these campaigns. We have always stuck to our CNPS perspective of scientific, factually based conservation action. Our Board, Conservation, and Plant Sci- ence Committees have functioned as a team to make sure of an honest and powerful message of Native Plant values. It has been an honor to be the "leader" of this group. I think my most important lesson learned is how much any one person stepping forward and tackling a job can accom- plish. This wasn't a job for which I was "qualified". It was job I could get done with the help of my fellow member active volunteers. I urge any CNPS member who has an interest in helping preserve native plant and habitat values to contact any Chapter Officer or Committee Chair to get actively in- volved. You will find people, volunteers like you, who share your values, and want to work hard and have fun. Again, thanks to the membership for giving me the honor. David Bigham THE BAY LEAF December 2012 3 ELECTION OF CHAPTER OFFICERS: PLEASE VOTE! The East Bay Chapter of the California Native Plant Society has five elected officers: President, Vice President, Cor- responding Secretary, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer. (These five officers will appoint committee chairs who will then become board members.) If you receive a printed Bay Leaf, you will find your ballot enclosed. If you have opted to receive Bay Leafs online even when there is a printed version, you will receive a ballot in the mail (in a regular envelope). There is no online ballot or online voting. Even though each position has only one candidate, please do vote as doing so indicates your support of the organization. There is space on the ballot for comments, which are very welcome. Here are brief biographies of the candidates. Nominees for Officers of the East Bay Chapter California Native Plant Society: President— Lesley Hunt My involvement with CNPS began when Bill and I volun- teered for Charli Danielsen's grasslands project in Mitchell Canyon in the early 90's. I went on to various environmental activities— everything from habitat restoration to politics— with the Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation and Friends of the Creeks in Walnut Creek where I live. In 2005 I began volunteering at Native Here to learn more about the plants I wanted to restore. I have attended state Chapter Council meetings with Bill for three years. I joined the East Bay Chapter Board of Directors a couple of years ago, represent- ing Native Here. While I have not done conservation work in CNPS-we are fortunate to have plenty of experts — I have done it elsewhere, mainly in the form of fighting bad development and lobbying for various restoration plans. I helped to lead a successful land acquisition campaign for Acalanes Ridge using political Lesley Hunt skills, coalition building, and fundraising. I served two terms as a planning commissioner for the City of Walnut Creek, thereby gaining a perspective which I believe is unique in the current Board. I have lead several restoration projects over the last 20 years and I am never happier than when Tm planting natives on Tuesday mornings. Vice-President— Bill Hunt I grew up on a farm, got an education in chemistry and earned a living writing computer software. I have always been interested in nature — places, plants and animals. Lesley and I belong to CNPS, the Nature Conser- vancy, Save Mount Diablo and other conservation organiza- tions. I am a regular visitor to many of the units of the East Bay Regional Park system. Lesley and I have taken spring wildflower trips to southern and central California in recent years. I record what I see as a casual photographer. My wes- bsite http://naturelover.smugmug.com/ contains a small amount of that record. Since 1991 1 have volunteered in and led habitat restoration projects with the Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation (WCOSF) and been on its board for 12 years. I created the WCOSF website http: / / www.wcosf.org in 2003 and main- tained it until recently. I served on the Walnut Creek Park, Recreation and Open Space Commission, the Steering Com- mittee for the city's General Plan and the Community Blue Ribbon Task Force on Fiscal Health. I have served as Vice President of the East Bay Chapter of CNPS and delegate to the Chapter Council for 3 years. I have served on the Logistics Committee, Planning and Evaluation (Strategic Plan) and Brand Development (Logo) Committees at the state level of CNPS. Bill Hunt Treasurer— David Margolies I was born in Washington DC and moved to California in 1970 to attend graduate school at UC Berkeley, where I was awarded a PhD in Mathematics in 1977. After working at a government lab for some years, in 1985 1 joined Franz Inc., a local software company, where I have worked ever since. I be- 4 THE BAY LEAF December 2012 came interested in plants as an adult and learned about them from Glenn Keator, taking courses at the California Academy of Sciences. I joined CNPS in the 90's, and soon started giv- ing field trips for the chapter. I have been assistant editor of the Bay Leaf for some years and treasurer of the chapter since 2010. 1 live in Oakland. David Margolies Recording Secretary— Christina Wistrom I have been interested in California native plants since my childhood in Sonoma County. My personal and professional interests include horticulture, entomology, and plant pathol- ogy. I joined CNPS in 2009 to learn more about our beautiful and incredible native plants. As recording secretary and EBCNPS board member, I can play a small role in preserv- ing them for my two children, aged 4 years and 4 months, to enjoy for many years to come. Tina Winstrom with financial contributions. My love of plants can be traced to many happy hours spent with my grandfather in his Orinda garden. I continue to this day to enjoy raspberries produced from cuttings of his original vines. Although my horticultural interests took a back seat while I studied to become an ophthalmologist, I was able to enjoy the many undergraduate biology classes I took to earn a B.S. in that major. My wife Stephanie and I returned to Orinda to raise our family. We soon found ourselves owners of a property that included a tributary of Lauterwasser Creek. I was surprised to discover how many exotics the land contained, and made it a goal to eliminate the invasive species. When we suffered a creek failure, we took the opportunity to enlist some pro- fessional help. A former patient of mine, the highly regarded native plant enthusiast Myrtle Wolf, recommended landscape architect David Bigharn. We have worked together for many years. Most recently, David has provided advice and assis- tance in helping me transform our front yard into a native meadow using plants from the Native Here Nursery as well as plants propagated from the local watershed. I have practiced ophthalmology in Berkeley since 1984 in a practice my father Lionel has been in since the 1950 , s. My brother Andrew joined us in 1996. One of my greatest profes- sional joys has been the opportunity to lead medical teams to a remote, impoverished area of Guatemala. Bob Sorenson Corresponding Secretary— Bob Sorenson It is my pleasure to continue serving as Corresponding Secre- tary for a second year. I have been impressed by the dedication of my fellow board members, and astonished by the number of area residents who believe in our work and support us THE BAY LEAF December 2012 5 CONSERVATION ANALYST REPORT Alameda County Solar Policy Last month, I attended the most recent of a series of meet- ings held by Alameda County Planners to receive feedback on a forthcoming set of policies regarding utility scale solar installations in rural areas of the County. As I reported in the June 2012 Bay Leaf, the draft policies are arranged as nine new policies to be added to the East County Area Plan, and three implementation programs. When the first draft came out, I was pleased to see "Policy 3: The County shall place the highest priority on the development of solar energy ca- pacity in the existing built environment in order to minimize environmental impacts." I have made comments supporting this policy, as have the several other environmental groups that make up our SOLAR Coalition, and it looks like the policy will remain in the final plan. Furthermore, due to our environmental coalition's work to educate the County about the environmental benefits of distributed generation in the already built environment rather than large scale solar facili- ties in rural areas, the County Board of Supervisors has asked for programs to be developed in order to support this policy. This plan is still far from being finalized, but I will continue to keep track of the process and will provide input whenever possible to support EBCNPS priorities. Last month, the Conservation Committee held a very produc- tive meeting where this solar issue and several other ongoing projects were discussed in detail. The Conservation Commit- tee meets every other month to discuss ongoing conservation projects and to set priorities for future action. Our next meet- ing will be in mid January. If you are interested in joining the committee and attending these meetings, please let me know. We will be happy to have you. The Conservation Committee is always looking for new volunteers to get involved in our many projects. If you are interested in working with me on any of the projects you have seen in these updates or any that you have read about on our blog, please feel free to contact me by phone at 510-734-0335 or by email at conservation© ebcnps.org. And as always, for more detailed updates on all of our conservation projects, please visit the Conservation Blog at http://ebcnps.wordpress.com_. Call to Action in Alameda County: Attention Alameda County Residents! Please read below to find out about a threat to Measure D. Measure D is the voter- determined land use policy in Alameda County that was passed in November 2000 to preserve agricultural and open space land and to limit development beyond the County's Urban Growth Boundary. The Alameda County Board of Supervisors is considering violating the terms of the Measure by making an amendment to Measure D without first gain- ing approval from voters. While the particular amendment being considered would not affect native plant conservation efforts in Alameda County, if successful, it would set a dan- gerous precedent and may embolden the Board of Supervi- sors to weaken the vital protections for open space that this measure provides. The Measure specifies that substantive 6 THE BAY LEAF December 201 2 provisions may only be relaxed by vote of the people and it is up to Alameda County Citizens to demand that the Board of Supervisors obeys the will of the voters. From the Sierra Club's Dick Schneider: A worrisome challenge threatens Alameda County Measure D, which sets the county's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB). Written by the Sierra Club and passed overwhelmingly by county voters in November 2000, Measure D restricts devel- opment on rural land outside the UGB. These policies have successfully protected agricultural and open-space land for the past 12 years. One of Measure D's key restrictions limits the floor-area ratio, the ratio of total building square footage to the size of the parcel. Keeping development in scale with parcel size controls the environmental impacts of development. At the behest of one landowner, however, on Jan. 8 (earlier version said Dec. 4), the county Board of Supervisors will consider an amendment to Measure D to double the allow- able floor-area ratio for equestrian facilities. Under Measure D and California election law, such a change would require a vote of the electorate. Section 23 of Measure D states that Measure D's provisions may be relaxed only by vote of the people, except for technical changes consistent with the initia- tive's substance. Nonetheless, the Board is voting on making the change itself, without going to the voters. If the Board feels able to openly disregard an explicit provision of Measure D, it may feel emboldened to make other changes that weaken the hard-won protections that have preserved the county's open space for over 12 years. What You Can Do We ask every Alameda County resident to contact your su- pervisor. Individual e-mail for each supervisor is available through http:yywww.acgov.org/board/. You can write to any Supervisor at 1221 Oak St., Oakland, CA 94612; or phone them at: • Scott Haggerty-District 1: 925-551-6995 or (510) 795- 2525 (Dublin, Livermore, most of Fremont, part of Sunol, and most of the unincorporated area of the Livermore- Amador Valley) • Richard Valle-District 2: 510-259-1097 (Hayward, Newark, Union City, the northern portion of Fremont, and part of Sunol) • Wilma Chan-District 3: 510-278-0367 (Alameda; San Leandro; Oakland's Chinatown, San Antonio, Fruitvale, and Melrose areas; San Lorenzo; and part of Ashland) • Nate Miley-District 4: 510-272-6694, 510-670-5717, 925-803-7959 (Pleasanton; Oakland's lower-hills, south-hills, and Elmhurst areas; Castro Valley; Cherry land; Fairview; and most of Ashland) DIRECTORY Officers President David Bigham david@hjuliendesigns.com, 1544 La Loma, Berkeley, CA 94708, 510-843-4247 Vice President and Chapter Council Delegate Bill Hunt wj h u nt@astou n d . n et Recording Secretary Tina Wistrom cmwistrom@yahoo.com, 510- 207-0370 Corresponding Secretary Robert Sorenson rls@sorensonvision.com Treasurer David Margolies 510-654-0283 dm@franz.com Committees Bayleaf Newsletter Bay Leaf Editor and Webmaster, Chair Joe Willingham 510-705-1798 pepel 066@comcast.net Bay Leaf Assistant Editor David Margolies 510-654-0283 dm@franz.com Bay Leaf Mailing Holly Forbes hforbes@berkeley.edu h 510-234-2913 w 510-643-8040 Conservation Jean Robertson, Chair gaiajean@yahoo.com Conservation Analyst Mack Casterman conservation@ebcnps.org 510-734-0335 Funds Development Delia Taylor, Chair deliataylor@mac.com Carol Castro carollbcastro@hotmail.com Field Trips Janet Gawthrop, Chair janetgawthrop47@gmail.com Hospitality Howard Julien Arendtson, Chair 510-548-7400 howard@hjuliendesigns.com Information Infrastructure Peter Rauch, Chair peterar@berkeley.edu Membership Carol Castro 510-352-2382 carollbcastro@hotmail.com Volunteer coordinator Delia Taylor volunteer@ebcnps.org Programs Sue Rosenthal rosacalifornica2@earthlink.net 510-496-6016 Publicity (vacant) Rare Plants Heath Bartosh, Chair 925-957-0069 hbartosh@nomadecology.com Bryophytes John Game, Chair 510-527-7855 jcgame@stanford.edu Unusual Plants Dianne Lake, Chair 510-741-8066 diannelake@yahoo.com Vegetation Megan Keever, Co-Chair megan@stillwatersci.com Nicole Jurjavcic, Co-Chair nicole@stillwatersci.com EBCNPS Sponsored Activi- ties Native Here Nursery 510-549-0211 Manager — Charli Danielsen nativehere@ebcnps.org Sales — Margot Cunningham bunchgrassmarg@gmail.com Plant Fair Charli Danielsen, Chair nativehere@ebcnps.org • Keith Carson-District 5: 510-272-6695. (Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville, Piedmont, and Oakland's west Oakland, north Oakland, and north-hills areas) Express your strong opposition to the Board changing Mea- sure D's limit on floor-area ratio without voter approval. Knowland Park Update: The results of the Measure A1 vote have been certified and the Measure has now officially been defeated. Just as we hoped, the public sorted this one out for themselves after they read the measure and realized that they weren't being told the full story by Measure A1 proponents. It's also important to note that the Measure's failure was not just due to anti- tax sentiment. Not only did Proposition 30 pass, but as of now, more than 21,000 more people voted "No" on Measure A1 than voted "No" on Measure Bl, the transportation tax measure. One would expect those two measures to be very close had it simply been anti-tax sentiment that accounted for Al's failure. The Measure's defeat proves that Alameda County Citizens care about Knowland Park and the plants and animals that call it home. During the campaign it quickly became clear that once the public was made aware of the Zoo's plans for expansion, they were against it. There is a strong public sen- timent that the Zoo is planning an expansion that is not in the public interest and furthermore will harm valuable and public natural resources. Also, there is no question that the Zoo's documented violation of campaign laws and violation of its contract with the City of Oakland during the campaign hurt its credibility. This loss of credibility in the public eye will make it more challenging for the Zoo to maintain that its environmentally harmful expansion development is a "conservation exhibit" in the future. Thank you all again for your hard work and for following along during this challenging campaign. Our work to pro- tect Knowland Park is not over yet. Please visit our website: http:/ / www.saveknowland.org often for updates on the Knowland Park Coalition's work, and if you haven't already, "like" us on Facebook (Save Knowland Park) and follow us on Twitter (@KnowlandPark). In the near future, we will be posting information about upcoming field trips and park stewardship events. Happy Holidays! Mack Casterman , Conservation Analyst THE BAY LEAF December 2012 7 ACTIVITIES OF OTHERS Golden Trout Wilderness Botanical Workshop Flora and Natural History of the Southern Sierra July 7-14, 2013 Location: Golden Trout Wilderness Camp Instructors: Tim Thomas, Pam McKay and Paul Collins Workshop Organizer: Susan D'Alcamo Come join us in the beautiful high Sierra of the Golden Trout Wilderness. Spend the week exploring alpine habitats of Cottonwood Lakes Basin and the John Muir Wilderness. Daily guided hikes and interpretive talks will be led by our experienced trip leaders. Lectures, slide shows and an opportunity to key plants with dissecting scopes will fill the evenings. We will see an abundance of wildflowers in alpine meadows and encounter endemic plant species while taking in the incredible Sierran vistas. Plant, animal and bird lists will be provided. Our instructors are professional botanists and natural- ists with many years experience in the Golden Trout Wilderness area. Cost: $525.00 (includes meals from Sunday dinner through Saturday lunch) For information, brochure, and registration contact: Susan D'Alcamo: dalcamo@mcn.org. Cell# 925-899- 0719 Membership Application and Renewal Form Name Address Zip Telephone Email I wish to affiliate with: East Bay Chapter (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) Other Membership category: Individual, $45 Family, Library, Group or International, $75 Plant lover, $100 Patron, $300 Benefactor, $600 Mariposa Lily, $1500 Limited Income or student, $25.00 Other Mail application and check to: California Native Plant Society, 2707 K Street, Suite 1, Sacramento CA 95816 8 THE BAY LEAF December 2012